The sound of car horns cut through the cold air outside Toyota Thursday afternoon as Canadian Auto Workers (CAW) members renewed attempts to establish a union in the Woodstock plant.

It’s been a little more than four years since the last CAW attempt to unionize the Toyota assembly plants in Woodstock and Cambridge. The Woodstock union drive comes on the heels of a similar drive Wednesday at the Cambridge Toyota Motor Manufacturing Canada.

About 30 members from across the province gathered at the plant’s Highway 2 entrance, flying their respective local flags and talking to those driving in and out of the plant during the afternoon shift change.

While standing in the median of the highway near the opening to the Woodstock plant, Bob VanCleef, a national CAW representative, said the main driving force behind the spark in union interest was changes in profit-sharing calculations and frustration over the contract worker hiring process.

“It’s very basic. Toyota is doing the best out of all the (auto) companies and, because of the conditions going on inside the plants, the workers came to us,” VanCleef said.

In contrast, several automakers have revealed plans to shut the doors of Canadian auto plants while Toyota Motor Manufacturing Canada has announced expansions and the hiring of an additional 400 people in the past year.

“One of the things really bubbling under the surface is the notion of contract workers,” he said. “Basically, contract workers are in a dead zone. They’re limited, have no benefits and are at constant risk.”

VanCleef was not currently aware of how many people working at the Woodstock Toyota plant are contract workers. To his knowledge , about 80% of employees were under contract when the plant opened, with many hoping of being hired full time. He said estimates suggest 30% of the Toyota workforce are contract employees.

“These people were hired thinking they would be employed full time, but they’re going on two or three years or more without being hired. They want to be hired full time here. They don’t want to rock the boat and they feel like they can’t say anything when they think they are being treated unfairly,” he said.

VanCleef said signing the approximately 5,500 Toyota workers up with the union would “change the complexion,” of collective bargaining with the automakers.

“Right now, we’re sitting with three of the five automakers. It would make a huge difference if we could sit down with all of them,” he said.

Ross Gerrie, president of CAW Local 636 located in Woodstock, described the situation of workers at Toyota.

“They are used as pawns,” he said. “I’ve known a lot of people that work for them. Some are happy and some are not happy. When someone has worked for them for 15 years and they are not happy, that tells me something,” he said.

At least 40% of employees must sign membership cards for the CAW to bring the request to establish a union at the plants before the Ontario Labour Board.

A committee of employees is working inside the plant to gain enough interest to make the attempt at unionizing viable.

TMMC officials could not be reached for comment on these reports of renewed union interest.